Seattle is the city of the future, at least from the vantage point of Mayor Mike McGinn. One of 10 presenters at Ignite Seattle 18, a speaker series held on Nov. 8., McGinn pointed out that during the World's Fair 50 years ago, people thought that life in 2012 would be like the cartoon The Jetsons. “We can make fun of what they thought the future was, but they got one thing exactly right: that we would be the city of the future by focusing on innovation, science, arts and culture. We’ve done that the last 50 years,” McGinn said, according to a report by GeekWire.com.

McGinn, like all speakers in the series, only spoke for five minutes, but got some of the biggest audience reactions. The mayor talked about the city's vibrant technology culture and how the city can lease its fiber network to the private sector.

The mayor also chatted up a new app called “Where's My Snow Plow,” calling it more evidence of the city's attempt to create stronger connections between residents and government. “We’re good at pushing information out, but we have to figure out how to listen and interact with you,” he said. “That’s the next generation.”

Seattle is the city of the future at least from the vantage point of Mayor Mike McGinn One of 10 presenters at Ignite Seattle 18 a speaker series held on Nov 8 McGinn pointed out that during the World's Fair 50 years ago people thought that life in 2012 would be like the cartoon The Jetsons